You & Me by The Walkmen

The sales of the digital version of the band's latest album will be donated to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and the Joy Fund. [Rock, Indie]

Publicado: 2008-08-19 Proveedor: Metacritic

Smoking Section: The Walkmen, Steve Miller, Billy Joel

“The Rat,” released by the Walkmen in 2004, is one of the greatest songs of this century. So the S.S. was stoked to get an early listen to their killer upcoming disc, You & Me, which has an equally awesome banger, “In the New Year.” The Walkmen recorded You & Me over two years at home in New York, and also in New Jersey, Philly and Mississippi. “It’s always exciting to come up with a big rocker that just works,” singer Hamilton Leithauser says about “New Year,” “because we don’t even like playing rock that much. That could be the problem: We spend so many hours playing slow waltzes.” Other You & Me cuts (”Canadian Girl,” “Red Moon”) will sound amazing live when the band storms through the U.S. in August and September. “It took everything we had to finish the record,” the singer says. “But we’re really happy with it.” We asked Leithauser for the skinny behind “The Rat.” “We were just screwin’ around,” he says. Drummer Matt Barrick kicked off a breakneck groove, and the boys joined in. “We threw some chords on it, I wrote the words in five minutes, and then we all started slammin’!” ***** We finally hit up one of Les Paul’s Monday-night gigs at the Manhattan jazz club Iridium. At age 93, Paul is still shredding. It was a special night — he welcomed his godson, Steve Miller, who sat in for “Fly Like an Eagle.” We hung with Miller during the gig (interrupted by a waiter saying, “Abracadabra!” while delivering a burger) and rolled back to his hotel, smoking stogies into the wee hours. Miller, 64, is rockin’ the USA once again, selling out sheds across the country. “The band gets hotter and hotter,” he says. “The shows have been a lot of fun.” Though he hasn’t released a fresh album since 1993’s Wide River, Miller told us of his desire to put out a new disc. After a trio of shows in March at the Fillmore in S.F., Miller was in the studio cutting 41 old blues gems. “Nothing but great tunes,” he says. “Like ‘Pretty Thing,’ by Bo Diddley; ‘No More Doggin’,’ by Rosco Gordon

Publicado: 2008-07-28 Proveedor: Rolling Stone Etiquetas: Rock News, Smoking Section

Lily Allen Reacts Poorly to Teasing, New Police Material Needs Work? And More

Every other morning we wake up to another series of cheeky remarks made by Lily Allen to some reporter. But it turns out that, when it’s aimed at her, Allen can’t handle even a little snark. “LDN Is A Victim,” a hilarious send-up of London scenesters pokes fun at a slew of artists (including The Streets and Lily Allen) for being, essentially, middle class posers masquerading as gritty underground kids. Sample lyric: “This is a middle class art school thing yeah? So put on your common accents and let’s all sing.” Ever the eager MySpacer, Allen posted on the as-of-yet-undisclosed composer’s MySpace page. She wrote:”So what if we’re middle class? Just cause your mum was too lazy to get her fat ass off the sofa and make some cash. I shouldn’t be able to make tunes yeah? (Which is more than you’re doing by the way).” How do you say ‘pansy’ in British hipster slang? It’s looking increasingly likely that those of us who take out a second mortgage in order to see the Police this summer will be treated to a gloriously old school set. This is because the band’s new material, the New York Daily News reported, was not well received by label honchos. “The band wanted a deal for a new record that their tour would support. People listened to the tracks, but they sounded like Sting’s solo albums - smooth jazz and New Age stuff,” the Daily News‘ source said. “People want to hear them rock! They want another ‘Message in the Bottle.’” Idolator is reporting that eMusic is no longer for sale. Rumors were swirling that Amazon might be buying the digital music retailer, but apparently, Digital Music News is reporting that the deal is off. Check out new tunes from Snow Patrol, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and the Walkmen, all set to be included on the new Spiderman soundtrack. A Swiss botanist called Dr. Jason R. Grant has named a new tropical plant

Publicado: 2007-04-10 Proveedor: Rolling Stone Etiquetas: Daily News: In Brief

You Spin Me Round: Coachella is Coming!

After getting a peek at this spring's Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival line-up, you might think you're having a 1999 flashback. Performers for this year include Bjork, the ever-present Red Hot Chili Peppers, and the newly-reunited Rage Against the Machine. After leaving the band seven years ago for a "solo career," singer Zack de la Rocha is back with Rage (at least temporarily) and will presumably be the main draw at the three day music festival. The event begins Friday, April 27 in Indio, CA, where you can rub shoulders with hippies and yuppies enjoying their ten-dollar bottles of Evian. Other performers include Arcade Fire (who will presumably be playing songs off their high-anticipated upcoming disc, Neon Bible), Willie Nelson, the Decemberists, the Arctic Monkeys, the Roots, Jarvis Cocker, Sonic Youth, Placebo, Stephen Marley featuring Jr. Gong, Kings of Leon, the Kaiser Chiefs, Amy Winehouse (I hope she performs drunk), and Silversun Pickups. Even though next summer's concert season seem years away, you can still enjoy some other kick ass bands braving the winter to bring you some fun. Check out concert dates for Bright Eyes, Neko Case, The Pogues, Lily Allen, The Decemberists, Bloc Party and The Walkmen. Plus, this weeks free MP3 is after the jump.

Publicado: 2007-01-30 Proveedor: A Socialite's Life